Morocco has spent years building solar farms and wind projects. Now it wants to send some of that electricity directly to France.
During the 15th France-Morocco meeting in Rabat, the two countries announced plans for a new electricity interconnection linking their power systems directly. The proposed project, known as Pont de la Méditerranée, would carry renewable electricity from Morocco to France through a submarine cable stretching from Nador on Morocco’s Mediterranean coast to Marseille in southern France.
The project is still at an early stage. Morocco is not yet a major renewable electricity exporter either. In 2025, the country generated 45.9 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, with renewable sources accounting for about a quarter of that output.
The significance of the France deal is therefore not that Morocco is already powering Europe. It is that European countries are beginning to look seriously at North Africa as a potential source of electricity generated from its strong solar and wind resources.
If Morocco can turn the proposal into working infrastructure, it could provide a model for other African countries. But the larger opportunity will depend less on how much renewable energy Africa can generate than on whether countries can build the grids, financing systems and institutions needed to make that power reliable.
Why Europe is interested in Morocco
Europe has become increasingly interested in cross-border electricity trade as it tries to make its power system more secure and accommodate more renewable generation.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine exposed the risks of relying heavily on a small number of energy suppliers. European governments have since looked for ways to diversify their energy sources while reducing their dependence on fossil fuels. That has increased interest in renewable electricity from countries close enough to Europe to supply power through new interconnections.
Morocco is well placed for that role. It is close to Europe, has strong solar and wind resources and has spent more than a decade building renewable energy infrastructure.
Morocco is now building on that foundation by expanding its connections with Europe. The proposed France connection is part of a wider effort to strengthen those links. The country is also developing Sila Atlantik, a proposed renewable energy corridor that could generate up to 15 gigawatts (GW) of electricity before transmitting some of that power to Germany.
It is planning a third 700-megawatt (MW) interconnection with Spain and is also exploring another connection with Portugal.
For Morocco, the attraction is clear. The country wants to become an energy hub between Africa and Europe. Electricity exports could become another part of that strategy as it expands renewable generation and develops industries that depend on large amounts of electricity.
But ambition is ahead of reality.
Morocco has built a head start
Morocco did not arrive at this point by accident. The country began investing heavily in renewable energy more than a decade ago, including the Noor Ouarzazate solar complex and large wind projects. It has also created a policy framework aimed at attracting investment into the power sector and set a target of raising renewables to 52% of installed electricity capacity by 2030.
The latest generation figures, however, show why the export story needs some caution.
Morocco produced 45.9 TWh of electricity in 2025, compared with 43.7 TWh in 2024. Renewable generation stood at 11.5 TWh. Wind accounted for 9.2 TWh, while solar produced 1.9 TWh and hydropower 0.4 TWh. Fossil fuels still supplied roughly three-quarters of the country’s electricity.
Morocco is therefore still changing its own electricity system while preparing for a larger role in the European market.
According to Emmanuel Benjamin, a renewable energy expert, the gap between Morocco’s current generation and its export ambitions should not be viewed simply as a weakness.
“Morocco has made significant progress, but it is still primarily building a renewable power system for its own economy. Becoming a major exporter will require a much larger generation base and stronger transmission infrastructure. The country will need to significantly expand its renewable generation before it can become a major electricity supplier to Europe,” Benjamin told Businessfront.
That is the central challenge. Exporting electricity requires more than strong solar and wind resources. Morocco will need enough generation to meet domestic demand while producing a reliable surplus for export. It will also need transmission capacity and flexible sources of power to keep electricity flowing when the sun is not shining or the wind is weak.
The proposed France link is therefore as much a test of Morocco’s ability to scale as it is of European demand.
Africa still has an electricity problem
This is where the Morocco-France project becomes a much bigger African story.
Africa has some of the world’s strongest renewable energy resources, particularly solar. Yet much of that potential remains disconnected from the people and businesses that need electricity. The International Energy Agency estimates that almost 600 million people in Africa still lack access to electricity.
That creates an uncomfortable question for African governments.
Why should countries export renewable electricity to Europe when millions of their own citizens still lack reliable power?
There is no simple answer. Electricity exports can attract foreign investment and create demand for new generation and transmission infrastructure. Long-term export contracts can also give renewable energy developers a predictable market that makes large projects easier to finance.
But export projects should add to domestic electricity supply rather than compete with it. This matters because Africa’s electricity problem is not simply a shortage of solar panels or wind turbines. It is a shortage of reliable power systems.
“Transmission is often the missing link. A country can build a large solar farm, but the electricity has limited economic value if there is no network capable of moving it to factories, cities and households,” Benjamin added.
According to him, the same problem applies to exports. A power plant cannot become an export business without the transmission infrastructure needed to move its electricity across borders.
That makes the infrastructure built around renewable exports almost as important as the electricity itself.
The real test starts now
Morocco’s proposed electricity link with France is important, but it is too early to call it a breakthrough.
The project has not yet been built. Morocco still needs to expand renewable generation, strengthen its grid and prove that long-distance electricity exports can make commercial sense. France and its European partners will also have to decide how much imported electricity they are willing to rely on when European countries can continue expanding generation within their own markets.
For Africa, the opportunity is bigger than becoming Europe’s electricity supplier.
The continent needs more reliable power for its own economies. Renewable electricity can help meet that need while creating an opportunity to sell surplus power across borders. If those two goals can be pursued together, electricity exports could become a source of investment rather than another example of Africa sending its resources abroad without building enough value at home.
That is the real test for Morocco. If it can build enough clean generation to serve its own economy and still have reliable power left to export, it will have demonstrated something more valuable than the ability to run a cable under the Mediterranean.
It will have shown that an African country can turn renewable resources into a competitive electricity business.
Europe may become the customer. But the bigger prize for Africa is building the power system that makes that customer possible.
